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YERBA MATE TEA 



The History of Its Early Discovery in Paraguay, 

Its Preparation in that Country and in 

Brazil, and Its Introduction into 

THE United States, 



briefly told by 

WILLIAM MILL BUTLER, 

Foreig-n Department, Philadelphia Commercial Museum; 

Editor of the Proceedings of the International 

Commercial Congress, etc. 



PHILADELPHIA : 
THE YERBA MATE TEA CO., 

I QOO. 



TWO COPIES HECElVt.. 

Library of Qongr^s^ 
Office u1 the 



8-1900 

liiegisUr of Copyrlght^i 



55824 



Copyright, igoo, 

by 

The Verba Mate Tea Co., 



fiecoWB COPY 






PREFACE. 



I HE purp( 
I known 



purpose of this little book is to make 
to the American people the excellent 
qualities of Yerba IMat'e Tea. 

Without disparaging anv of the pleasing 
beverages which find such wide acceptance in 
this country, we wish to make this unique claim 
for Mate, based upon the highest scientific au- 
thority : it is the only beverage which leaves 
absolutely no bad after effects upon those who 
drink it in large or small quantities, it combines 
all the good qualities of coffee and Chinese or 
Japanese tea, but is almost entirely devoid of 
empyreumatic or essential oils, which act as 
irritants upon the human system. 

Here, then, we have an ideal drink — one 
that is delightful to the taste, when once we have 
become accustomed to it ; one that promotes di- 
gestion, gives immediate strength to the body 
and brain and acts soothingly upon the nervous 
system. 

The ladies will be especially interested to 
know that it exercises absolutely no bad effects 
upon the complexion, 'x 

We have endeavored to sketch briefly the 
history of Yerba Mate, its preparation for mar- 
ket, its adoption as a national drink by over 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



// 



20,000, oco people, its introduction into this country ! 
through the International Commercial Congress, | 
and have also described some of the curious and 
picturesque customs which are observed in con- j 
nection with its consumption in its native home. 1 
It is especially noteworthy that those who drink 
the most Mate drink the least alcohol— in fact, 
they do not feel the necessity for alcoholic bever- ; 
ages at all. Yerba Mate Tea is one of the great- i 
est natural aids to temperance the world has ever 
known. During the hot summer weather it is 
the most cooling and refreshing drink imaginable./ 

We call especial attention to the analyses 
presented and also to the words of wisdom from j 
medical men, scientists and others. If their ; 
testimony is worth anything there can be no 
doubt that a new factor in the well-being of our ■ 
people now awaits their general acceptance. ■ 




-afi^^.. 




CHAPTER 1. 



THE DISCOVERY OF VERBA MATE. 

^TlSTORY tells us that the discovery of the 
IN western world was closely followed by 
V^ the sending of missionaries to the be- 
nighted aborigines inhabiting its vast area. The 
Jesuit Fathers who made their way through the 
wilds of South America, up the great river into 
Paraguay, found the native Indians or Guaranys 
industriously chewing the leaves of a shrub 
which grew luxuriantly in those parts and which 
the learned botanists afterwards named Ilex 
Para^uensis. . The Indians called it mate, and 
also drank a decoction made from its leaves. 

As these dusky sons of the forest were able 
to withstand to an amazing degree all kinds of 
hardships, going without solid food for days at 
a time, the Jesuits concluded that the shrub 
which was prized so highlv and used so exten- 
sively must possess valuable properties. They 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

tlierefore tried the mate and found it very good. 
In fact, it occured to them that while they had 
come to teach the aborigines, the latter had also 
been able to show them something in return. 

So the holy fathers enjoyed the mew and 
beneficial beverage and introduced it to their 
countrymen who came after them. They estab- 
lished mate plantations and carefully studied the 
properties and cultivation of the plant. They 
were the^ first to discover that drying or roasting 
gave it a delicate aroma and imparted to it new 
and valuable properties. 

A century or so later the Portuguese also dis- 
covered mate forests or yefbales, as they are 
called, in the southern part of Brazil, in territory 
adjacent to Paraguay. The zone of mate pro- 
duction has since been shown to embrace almost 
the whole of Paraguay and the States of Rio 
Grande. Santa Catharina, Parana, and Matto 
Grosso in Brazil. Nowhere else has the wonder- 
ful shrub or tree been found, however, and the 
two countries, Brazil and Paraguay, thus have a 
monopoly of the supply of Verba Mate, which 
is also popularly known as Paraguay tea. 





Gathering Alate. 

CHAPTER 11. 

HOW IT IS GATHERED AND PREPARED 
FOR MARKET. 

f ET us now see, for a moment, by what process 
I Yerba Male is brought from the yerbale to 
i ^ ^ the consumer. 

Although mate appears to have been used 
from time immemorial by the Indians, the Jesuits 
were the first to attempt its cultivation. This 
was commenced at their branch missions in 
Paraguay and the province of Rio Grande do 
Sue, where some plantations still exist. Under 
cultivation the plant remains a shrub with 
numerous stems instead of forming, as in the 
wild state, a tree with a rounded head and 
leaves from six to eight inches long. Cultivation 
is not necessary to produce the best mate, the 
secret being rather in the preparation of the 
leaves and stems after they have been gathered. 

In Paraguay, for many years, the Indians, 
employed for that purpose under contracts sanc- 
tioned by the government, collected the yerba 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



mate. They traveled in companies of about 25, 
erectinjj; their wigwams in the yerbales and set- 
tling down to a stay of five or six months, begin- 
ning usually in December. Their first operation 
was to prepare an open space about six feet square 
in which the surface of the soil was beaten hard 
and smooth with mallets. The leafy branches 
of the mate were then cut down and placed in 
the clearing where they underw ent a preliminary 
roasting from a fire kindled around it. An arch 
of poles, or of hurdles, was then erected above 
it, on which the mate was placed, a fire being 
lighted underneath. This part of the process 
demanded great care, since by it the leaves had 
to be rendered brittle enough to be easily pulver- 
ized and the aroma had also to be developed, the 
amount of heat necessary being learned by ex- 
perience. . After drying, the leaves were reduced 
to a coarse powder in mortars formed of pits in 
the earth well rammed. 

More recently other methods of preparing the 
mate have also been employed. The govern- 
ment still controls some yerbales and permission 
to gather is granted 
to those who carry 
on the mate indus- 
try. The Indians 
in Paraguay, and 
the natives, or 
other laborers, in 
Brazil, are sent into 
the forests at the 
proper season to 



Roastiiior Mate 




VERBA MATE TEA. 

gather the leaves and small branches most suit- 
able for making the tea. As will be seen from 
the accompanying illustrations, which are from 
actual photographs, the mate is brought out of 
the yerbales to a place where temporary shelters 
have been erected. In these rude huts or cabins, 
a portion is set apart as a place of storage while 
in another part apparatus for roasting the leaves 
and stems is set up. This consists principally 
of large copper pans under which a slow fire is 
built. After being properly roasted, the product 
is put in long bags, and stored under an addi- 
tional shelter secute from the rain. The bags 
are next put in a larger store-house and from 
this they are started on their way to the mills by 
means of ox-teams, or on mule or horseback. In 
fact, various modes of transportation are usually 
necessary before the final destination is reached, 
including shipment by flat-boats or lighters on 
the rivers. 

A first-class mate mill employs as high as 
thirty men and can turn out daily, between 80 
and 90 barrels of about 250 pounds each. The 
product of the mills is taken and marketed by a 
few large concerns who control the entire output. 




^' 



CHAPTER III. 

HOW SOUTH AMERICANS DRINK MATE. 

'7T, DESCRIPTION and comparison of the 
kT drinkinj^; habits of the various nations of 
V^the earth would no doubt prove highh' 
interesting and instructive. Nearly every coun- 
try has its so-called national drink, and in almost 
every instance it is an intoxicant. Where it is 
not an intoxicant it is something else whose ex- 
cessive use entails serious consequences. 

Yerba mate is the only exception to the 
general rule. It is the nati(^nal drink in Para- 
guay, the Argentine Republic and Uruguay, and 
is largely consumed also in Chile, Southern 
Brazil, and in other South American republics, 
so that it has lately been estimated that over 
20,000,000 people drink it regularly. And yet 
the testimony is unanimous that no one ever suf- 
fer;^ any bad effects 
from it, even though 
they should drink it 
excessively. Awriter 
in a recent issue of 
" O Mercurio'' of 
Rio de Janeiro, sa\s: 




Cnrryiny MaU- to Tem]ioraiy Storehoiipe. 



YERRA MATH TEA. 

" If the reader has traveled tor some davs 
through the Argentine countries, Uruguay, or 
our States, where the consumption of mate has 
the preference, or rather where it is the onlv 
beverage, he will have noticed the liveliness, 
healthy freshness, and good physical condition 
of the people of those regions. This excellent 
disposition of human nature cannot be attributed 
to the influence of the climate only, nor to the 
food and alimentation, and still less to the race 
itself. There exists nevertheless a factor in this 
well-being; what may it be? The water? it 
is possible that the precious liquid of these regions 
is superior, for instance, to that of Rio de Janeiro. 
To the solid food? And what is the precise 
difference, the typical difference, if it may be 
called such, between the solid food used by those 
people and the rest of our country, after deduct- 
ing the climatic requirements? The climate? 
But this physical well-being is not in any way 
peculiar to certain climates; if it were so, these 
paradise-like regions would be overpopulated. 
There is, therefore, an element. Let us find it. 
In these regions coffee is very little used, tea is 
drank but rarely, alcohol is entirely abstained 
from, but above all these beverages mate is used 
to a degree which would amount to excess, if it 
were not for its therapeutic qualities." 

Yerba mate tea is taken by infusion like 
ordinary tea or coffee. In South America there 
exists a curious and picturesque manner of 
drinking it, by means of the cuya and bombilla, 
which is highly esteemed by all the people, in- 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

eluding those of the best society. When i 
had the honor, a tew weeks ago, of calling 
upon the Brazilian Minister at \^'ashington, 
a very scholarly and dignified as well as 
affable gentleman, he had his servant bring 
his cuya to show me how he preferred to 
take mate himself, every day, in accordance 
with the custom of his country. 

The cuya is a small calabash, made of a 





Ti-ansportiug- Mate in Ox-Qa 

ll 

gourd-like fruit whose scientific name it is not *■ 

necessary to give here. It is about the size of I 

a large orange and has a tapering end which | 

serves for a handle. There are other cuyas, i 

however, without handles, and of slightly ' 

flattened or other odd shapes. All the cuyas 'i 

are ornamented, the cheaper ones having 
figures roughly traced upon them as if made ,■ 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

with a hot iron. The finer kind have inscriptions, 
figures of saints, pretty women, animals, etc., 
carved upon them, and are silver, or even gold, 
mounted. 

In the top of the cuya is a circular hole about 
the size of a silver half-dollar, and through this 
opening the tea is drawn by means of a bombilla. 
This in- 
strument 
consists 
of a small 
tube, six 
or seven 
inches 
long 
usually 
formed 
of metal, 
with a 
bulb at 
one end 
perf r- 
ated with 
minute 
holes so 
as to pre- 




Drink Verba Mate 
and be happy." 



vent the 
particles 
of tea 
from 
being 
drawn up 
into the 
mouth. 
Some 
mate is 
first 
placed in 
the cuya. 
Boiling 
water is 
then add- 
ed, and 
if desired 
sugar 



and milk to suit the taste. Many prefer to take 
the mate clear, however, claiming for it a higher 
efficiency in promoting health and strength. The 
cuya, being duly prepared, is passed around to 
those present and all partake of the beverage, as 
a rule through the same bombilla, just as the 
calumet is handed around among the North 



>,^ 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



American Indians. It is tlie universal sign of 
hospitality to offer mate in this manner. It is, 
however, also drank from cups, the same as 
other tea or coffee, especially in the large cities 
and at social functions, as appears from the 
drawing reproduced from a Rio de Janeiro pub- 
lication. 

In concluding this chapter I cannot do better 
than to quote the following bit of description by 
Senhor Affonso Arnoldo 
Rutis, of Sao Paulo, Bra- 
zil : 

" During my frequent 
travels in the South Amer- 
ican republics, 1 had plent\' 
of opportunity to make 
observations on the con- 
sumption of yerba mate 
tea. I remember, for in- 
stance, a trip from Santa 
Anna do Livremento, on 
the boundary of Brazil, 
to Montevideo, which I 
made on horseback, ac- 
complishing the whole journey through Uruguav 
in seven days. At every halting point, and 
wherever I changed horses, the little tea-kettle 
was taken from the pack-horse, water was 
heated and the mate tea prepared in the cuya, 
after which the bombilla was quickly put in, 
and the splendid, refreshing beverage served 
about four or five times in turn to everyone. No 
drink could be more strengthening to the nerves 




.Senhor Rutis. 



14 



YERBA MATE TEA. 

and the system, and at the same time serve to cool 
the perspiration caused by riding, like this one. 

" Every one of my camaradas had in his 
pocket a small bag full of this >erba mate ; his 
cuya and bombilla never left him, and even if 
they could not get anything to eat, these good 
sons of the pampas were satisfied with their tea. 
And what a ride ! We rode from i6 to i8 hours 
per day, and I am convinced that we were in- 
debted for the necessary strength to accomplish 
this only to the tea above mentioned. 

" Three times we were fortunate enough, 
in the evening, to be very kindly received and 
sheltered in the so-called ' Estancias.' After the 
customary salutation, ' Blessed be the name of 
Mary,' and the answer on the part of the host, 
' Now and evermore, Amen,' the horses were 
left to the care of the servants and we entered 
the ' pateo,' and often the best room in the 
house, where the whole family circle was assem- 
bled, to whom strangers like ourselves appeared 
to be something quite special. 

" Not a word was spoken, neither were any 
questions asked as to our names, or the whence 
and whereto of our journey. The head of the 
house puts down his cigarette ; a man-servant 
or maid appears with the cuya and the bombilla, 
and after first taking a sip in order to see whether 
the tea has been properly prepared, if there is 
sugar enough in it, and if it is not too strong, it 
is presented to the head of the family. 

"With perfect calmness and evident enjoy- 
ment expressed in his face, our host sips the 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

contents, gives the cuya back to the servant, who 
adds more hot water, and in this way the cup 
is passed from one to the other. Not a word is 
spoken in the meantime until every member of 
the family has enjoyed the beverage. 

" Only after everyone has been favored with 
a drink, our host begins his questions as to the 
whence, whereto and purpose of the trip, what is 
being done in the ' Capita!,' what heads are in 
government, etc, and his eyes sometimes flash, 
and his fingers bend themselves as though they 
would grasp his long knife, if this or that in- 
formation is either agreeable or otherwise. After 
the questions have been put and replied to, you 
are asked to come to the table and yerba mate is 
the beverage served here also. 

" On those occasions it is due to this bev- 
erage that digestion is so quickly, agreeably and 
rationally performed, for very often the privations 
previously endured do not make digestion a very 
easy matter. 

" Afterwards we are taken to our rooms, 
and before retiring the tea is served again in the 
cuya, and refreshing sleep comes soon and 
strengthens us for the next journey. 

" Outside, round the big fire, are the ' Ar- 
rieiros,' who are obliged to spend an hour, before 
starting off on the journey, in catching the horses 
by means of lassos. The night is beautiful but 
cool, and the chief consolation of these good 
children of the plains is that they may in the 
meantime sip their yerba mate. 

" At last we arrive at the railway station ; 



i6 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



the water is boiling in the refreshment-room and 
again everyone unpacks his cuya and drinks his 
ma'e. And thus it goes at every station. Eat- 
ing is quite a secondary matter, as long as the 
bag is provided with mate. 

" Hov/ many times have I seen in the Cor- 
dilleras, soldiers, miners, guanaco-hunters, who 
were perfectly content to have for many days 
nothing but a hard piece of bread or a piece of 
dried beef, being indebted to the mate for 
strength, health and power of endurance. 
" If one goes up the Parana River, 
by steamer, and looks into a third-class 
cabin, one sees a whole circle assembled 
around the kettle of boiling water, the tea 



,« 




South Americau Mate Reception. 




Chinese Despair. 

From a .South American 

Poster. 

in the cuya, and in this way they remain 

together for hours, drinking their tea and 

telling stories. 

" But the yerba mate is not enjoyed by the 

lower classes only. It is used in every good 

family, as high as the head of the State. The 

only difference is that it may be served in cups 

instead of the cuya. It is not a mere custom to 

drink this tea, but it is a beverage which is 

equalled by none in its beneficial influence on the 

health, and in its strength-giving properties, for 

in the favorable composition of the yerba mate 

are to be found the reasons for its aid to digestion 

and soothing influence on the nerves. 

" As regards your question what general 
effect this tea has on the people, I give it as 
my well-based opinion that it is the best means 
ol preventing the use of alcoholic drinks, as well 
as a means of creating moderate habits and 
strengthening the constitution. It is very well 
known that sugar serves to build up the bones, 
and, combined with mate, it gives energy to the 
body and settles the nervous system. 1 myself 
am indebted to the constant use of mate for 
calming the action of the heart, and a great 
many other people have expressed themselves 
in a similar manner," 



i8 



CHAPTER IV. 



ITS INTRODUCTION INTO THE UNITED STATES. 

THE twentieth century will see the people ot 
the United States enjoying the benefits of 
yerba mate tea throughout the length and 
breadth of the land. 

For this privilege, and for the enormous 
addition to its vital energies, our country will 
be largely indebted to the Phila- 
delphia Commercial Museum, 




A Speech on Mate before the 
Commercial Congrress. 



and to the 
International 
Commercial 
Congress, 
which was held under its auspices in October, 
1899. At this Congress thirty-eight foreign 
governments, and several hundred chambers of 
commerce in all parts of the world, were repre- 
sented by delegates. Their deliberations received 
the approval of the President of the United States, 



«9 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



in his annual message, and they themselves his 
personal felicitations at a special reception given 
in their honor. 

The main object of the International Com- 
mercial Congress was to extend the commercial 
relations between the United States and other 
nations, to remove trade disabilities, and bring 
the business men of the whole world into closer 
touch with each other. Many excellent sugges- 
tions were made and resolutions adopted. Among 
the speeches most attentively listened to were 
several from South American delegates in which 
they called attention to verba mate and the bless- 
ings which the use of this tea would bring to the 
people of the United States. 

Captain J. Cordeiro da Graca, government 
delegate from Brazil, said among other things : 
" The principal product of Parana is mate tea— 
a beverage with all the good qualities of coffee 
and tea without having any of their defects. 
This article is exported in 
farge quantities to Chile 
and the River Plate repub- 
lics. It is a very strong 
aid to digestron and has 
no bad effect upon the 
nervous system, upon 
which it acts very sooth- 
higly. The mate alone 
will tend to lengthen the 
life of all those who use 
ft. I recommend this good 
article to all Americans 

Capt. da Graca. 




VERBA MATE TEA. 



and especially to those who wish to have a 

wholesome beverage, which is splendidly adapted 

also for children and wet nurses." 

Serior Carlos R. Santos, government dele- 
gate from Paraguay, declared: "Verba mate, 

Paraguayan tea {Ilex 

Paraguensis), made from 

the leaves of a shrub which 

are pulverized or simply 

cured as other tea, affords 

a drink known by the 

name of ' yerba mate' all 

through South America, 

where the people drinking 

it number over 20,000,000. 

Mate tea is recommended 

for its hygienic, nutritious 

and invigorating proper- 
ties by scientific journals 

and notabilities, and that 

its general use in the United States depends 

solely upon its becoming more widely known 

is a fact beyond a doubt." 

Not only the foreign delegates, however, 

tut -representatives of the United States, who 
attended the Congress, declared that 
' they knew the good qualities of this 
tea from personal experience while 
in their country's service down in 
South America. Among these was 
Hon. Eugene Seeger, United States 
Consul-General at Rio de Janeiro, 
who said: "in the neighborhood 




Seuor Santos. 




Hon. Eugene Seeger. 




of 20,000,000 people use 
verba mate tea. It is the 
favorite drink of tlie Ar- 
gentines, the Uruguayans and 
the Brazilians. The tea strength- 
ens your body, brain and nerves, 
and enables you to endure all 
kinds of hardships. It has no unpleasant 
after effects, and I should like to see it 
given to our soldiers. I think it would 
be of great advantage to the troops in 
the Philippines or those who are stationed in 
Cuba or Porto Rico." 

Mr. Seeger, in a report made to the State 
Department at Washington, and published in 
the Consular Reports for January, igoo, again 
expresses himself strongly upon the subject. He 
says : 

" For various reasons the import of mate 
into the United States ought to be encouraged. 
It is pre-eminently a temperance drink, and the 
temperance societies in the United States could 
do a very useful work by helping to popularize 
it. The great masses of Uruguay and Argen- 
tine, — including the famous gauchos (cowboys) 
of the great prairies, who use it constantly, 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



I 



instead of water, tea or coffee, — hardly ever use 
alcoholic stimulants. It is almost incredible what 
hardships they undergo and how vigorous they 
are, while often for a successive number of days 
they use nothing to sustain them but mate." 

These, and many other warm expressions 
from the highest possible sources, led to the 
formation of the Yerba Mate Tea Company, 
for the purpose of introducing the tea to the 
people of the United States and Canada. Con- 
tracts have been made whereby this company 
handles the entire output for these two countries. 




Transporting Yerl)a Mate in Lighters. 




CHAPTER V. 

COMPARATIVE ANALYSES OF VERBA 
MATE TEA. 

IN the scientific and technical laboratories 
of the Philadelphia Commercial Museum 

many tests are annually made with special 
reference to the industrial value of given pro- 
ducts, and merchants and others in foreign coun- 
tries continually send samples of exportable goods 
in order that the Museum may report on their 
usefulness for the American market. It was 
quite natural, therefore, that this great institution 
shou'-i le requested to pass upon the merits of 
yerba mate tea. 

There had been many previous analyses in 
South America, and some in Europe, of yerba 
mate, but none in this country of which there 
was any record. Hundreds of Europeans and 
Americans, who traveled in the southern hemi- 
sphere and enjoyed their mate there, brought 
back, from time to time, the highest opinion of 
the beverage. Humbolt and Darwin, among 



24 



VERBA MATt TEA. 

the scientists, partook of it and praised its good 
qualities. In Darwin's " Journal of Researches," 
a record of his South American journey, we find 
illustrations of his collection of cuyas and bom- 
billas, and the following significant passage : 
" I reached the place of our bivouac by sunset, 
and drinking much mate, soon made up my bed 
for the night. The wind was very strong and 
cold, but 1 never slept more comfortably." 

1 have been shown many letters \\'hich the 
Yerba Mate Tea Company has received from 
Americans who were formerly in South America 
and who are rejoiced that yerba mate is now to 
be obtained in this country. " Many times," 
writes J. M. Carter, of Delhi, N. Y., "have 
1 drank this cup that inebriates not with the 
kindly, warm-hearted natives. It is not only 
refreshing, but invigorating and restorative. 
A peon will often work the whole day, taking 
nothing but mate." Mr. Wilfred H. Schoff, 
chief of the foreign department of the Phila- 
delphia Commercial Museum, who made an 
extended South American tour, in i8gg, was 
the first to recommend it to me in high terms 
of praise. He had also made a collection of 
cuyas and bombillas, and kindly gave me one 
and showed me how to use it. 

But while the testimony of travelers, on 
their return from those distant countries in 
which it is the favorite beverage, has from 
time to time aroused no little interest in yerba 
mate, for want of a systematic effort to introduce 
it, no market had ever before been created for 



25 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



the article in the United States. While American 
dictionaries and works of reference all speak very 
highly of yerba mate, it remained for an author- 
itative and actual demonstration to be made of 
its merits by an institution which enjoys in the 
highest degree the confidence and 
esteem of the governments and 
business men of the entire world. 
The analysis of the Philadelphia 
Commercial Museum was per- 
sonally made by Dr. Ernst 
Fahrig, chief of laboratories, a 
chemist of world-wide reputa- 
tion, whose years of experience 
ur. Ernst Fahrig. jj^ analyzing teas, in London, 
lend to his work in this line especial weight. 

i take pleasure in giving herewith the mate 
analysis, together with anahses of coffee and 
green and black tea, also made by Dr. Fahrig : 




Analyses of tea, coffee and mate. 



Moisture, 228° F. Time, 3 hrs. . . . 

Es.^ential oil 

Wax, resin, gum and fatty acids . . 
Tannic and gallotaunic acids . . . 
Caffein and thein .... . . . 

Fibre, crude 

Fibrous cellnlo.se 

Extract matter 

Chlorophyl 

Residue, iusolubles, mineral matter. 
Ash 



BTea 



G Tea 



9.20 

•65 

2.60 
11.23 

1.70 
10.10 
22.40 
23.80 

2.40 
10.52 

.S-40 



Coffee 



8.20 

•57 
12.10 
4.20 

•93 

12.00 

30.00 

16.80 

1.40 

lO.IO 

3^7o 



100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 



Mate 



9.10 

NONE * 
'•95 
1.80 

•30 
12.60 

11-55 
30 20 

6.50 
22.00 

4.00 



* The amount is so small it does not constitute .01 
per cent., and, therefore, cannot he taken into account. 



26 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

In addition to the analysis, Dr. Fahrig also 
made a series of careful physiological tests. He 
says in his report : " Yerba mate tea must be 
considered a most valuable beverage. It is 
especially beneficial for the stomach and nerves. 
It has great sustaining power but does not irri- 
tate. Its effect is soothing and quieting, with 
no deleterious consequences of any kind. The 
almost total absence of essential oil in the results 
obtained from the analysis speaks volumes in 
this connection. Then, let us look also at the 
tannic and gallotannic acid. This is a most 
serviceable astringent, when present in moderate 
quantities, as in yerba mate tea, combined with 
a small percentage also of caffein alkaloid, which 
builds up the nerves and performs other good 
offices. Again, the percentage of ash is low, and 
contains distinct traces of manganese, which en- 
riches the blood. In this connection 1 would also 
state that, contrary to experience with other teas 
and coffee, mate may be freely drank after stand- 
ing forty-eight hours, without any unpleasant 
disturbances, even in strong decoction. It re- 
mains just as healthful as when freshly made." 

This is certainly a remarkable confirmation 
of every claim advanced for yerba mate in other 
countries. In fact, the Philadelphia Commercial 
Museum's analysis ably sustains the analyses of 
yerba mate made by Dr. Peckolt, of Riode 
Janeiro ; A. Moreau, the well-known chemist, of 
Tours, France, and many others who might be 
mentioned. 




CHAPTER VI, 



OTHER VALUABLE OPINIONS. 

WERE I to attempt to quote all the good things 
about verba mate which have come under 
my notice, I would require a larger vol- 
ume than this for that purpose alone. I might 
give at length, for example, the learned observa- 
tions of Dr. Caminhoa, Professor of the Faculty 
of Medicine, at Rio de Janeiro, whose opinions 
are confirmed by Dr. Lancaster, Director of the 
Museum, at South Kensington, England, Dr. 
Schnepp, of Bonn, and many others. I might 
also give the report, read before the Academy of 
Science, at Paris, by Byasson, the celebrated 
chemist, who declared that " the dynamic value 
of mate is enormous, since it enables the soldiers 
of Paraguay and Argentina, as well as the 
' gauchos,' to live serveral days 
without solid food, in spite of the 
fatigue of hunting in the vast soli- 
tudes of South America. In these 
regions," he continues, 
" mate is the first thing 
offered to a 
guest. It forms 
an essential part 
of the soldier's 
ration." Again, 
Dr. G u b 1 e r 
classes it among 
the foremost 
ph\ si () logical 




Our Verba Mate Mill. 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



agents in repairing the forces of the human body. 

Dr. Conty, a physician of the highest repu- 
tation, also details his personal experience. 1 will 
quote but two or three sentences. He says : "As 
I was accustomed to drink coffee, I found this 
stimulant necessary in order to work. When I 
did not take it, I felt tired, and sleepy, and when 
1 abstained from its use a short time 1 had insom- 
nia and palpitation. After substituting mate for 
coffee, I was able to work at will without becom- 
ing tired or sleepy, and in a short time my in- 
somnia disappeared." 

Dr. Mantegazza, the great Italian physician, 
voices the opinion of the profession when he says 
that mate is especially good for those who are 
given to intellectual labors. Many other author- 
ities recommend it for those who perform hard 
manual labor. The fact is that mate is in the 
highest degree excel- 
lent for all who need 
strength, whether of 
the brain or body. 

In concluding this 
chapter I will permit 
myself to quote briefly 
from a letter just re- 
ceived from His Excel- 
lency, Dr. de Assis- 
Brasil, Brazilian Min- 
ister at Washington. 
He says : 

"I am having an 
almost dailv confirma- 



*%♦■» 




Dr. de Assis-Hrasil. 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

tion of the good alimentary qualities of mate. 
Whenever I have to make a long trip on my 
bicycle in the morning, I just take some of 
my mate, without sugar, and then I can start 
out feeling sure of neither becoming faint nor 
hungry until I return for my breakfast at mid- 
day. 1 do the same thing when 1 have a great 
deal of brain-work to do in the morning and 
fear that a heavy stomach will interfere with it ; 
the mate makes me forget my breakfast and 
puts me in good condition for work. Peruvian 
coca has a similar effect, which however, while 
satisfying the feeling of hunger, at the same 
time spoils one's appetite ; the mate gives a sen- 
sation of comfort to the stomach without causing 
any such results ; you can enjoy your meals 
with the best of appetites after taking it." 

The Minister also wrote a most interesting 
and valuable paper on verba mate, which was 
officially published in the Monthly Bulletin of 
the Bureau of American Republics, and in which 
he says: "Mate is a quencher of thirst par 
excellence and a great restorative. Spanish- 
American writers ascribe to it powerful efficacy 
against gout and colic. Indeed, it is well-known 
that these affections, which are so common in 
Europe, are never found among people who use 
mate. Moreover, this plant, by its action upon 
the peristaltic movements of the organs of elimin- 
ation, has the property of curing indigestion." 







CHAPTER VII. 

HOW THE PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY 
SHOULD DRINK VERBA MATE. 

WE have now seen how verba mate 
was discovered several hundred 
years ago, in far-off Paraguav ; 
how it grows in the yerbales and is pre- 
pared for marl<et ; how South Americans drink 
it, and how its successful introduction into the 
United States was brought about by the Phila- 
delphia Commercial Museum, mainly through 
the International Commercial Congress held 
under its auspices. We have examined the 
thorough analysis of yerba mate tea made in 
the Museum laboratories by an eminent chemist, 
and have noted in what respect it differs most 
decidedly from other beverages. We have 
perused with pleasure the most favorable opinion 
of yerba mate tea expressed by Dr. Fahrig, on 
the basis of his analysis, as well as the opinions 
of eminent chemists and physicians in foreign 
countries. Many personal experiences similar 
to that so interestingly given by the Brazilian 
Minister, as well as testimonials showing the 



VERBA MATE TEA. 

remarkable curative powers of yerba mate tea, 
might be quoted, but lacl< of space prevents. 1 
may state that they will be gathered into a little 
volume to be issued separately and to be obtained, 
upon application, by those directly interested. 

It only remains for me to make a few closing- 
observations upon the manner in which yerba 
mate should be drank by the people of the 
United States and Canada. In the first place I 







would remark that everybody should drink this 
coming beverage — the well, because they wish 
to preserve their health, and the sick because it is 
the greatest aid in the world to help them to re- 
gain that which they have lost. Yerba mate is 
a distinctively health-giving beverage and no 
deleterious effects can possibly follow its abundant 
and satifying use by man, woman or child. 

It should be served regularly at the table, 
with or without sugar or milk to suit the indi- 
vidual taste. As soon as the effects of other 
beverages and their irritants have been neutral- 

•> '■> -• 



VERBA MATE TEA. 



ized by mate, the human system will be found 
to prefer the latter. A lady who had used strong 
tea for years, but who had tried mate instead for 
several weeks, came to me the other day and 
said : " I have a confession to make. 1 tried 
to drink a cup of tea to-day, but 1 positively dis- 
liked it and could not swallow it. 1 like only 
mate now." 

Mate should also be served at social gather- 
ings. For ladies' whist or other card parties 
nothing could be finer to neutralize the effect of the 
excitement caused by the playing. An afternoon 
mate would prove a delightful and beneficial 
gathering. A novel effect can be produced 
by drinking the mate from the cuya and 
bombilla as they do in South America. Sev- 
eral charming society women have already ., 
assured me that this will 
become a fad and have 
requested me to 
procure a supply 
of the pretty 
calabashes. I am 
authorized to 
state that a ship- 
ment of the 
choicest kinds is 
already on the 
way and will be 
placed on the 
market by the 
Verba Mate Tea 
Company. 




DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING 

VERBA MATE TEA 

(THE MOST HEATHFUL AND NUTRITIOUS 
BEVERAGE IN THE WORLD) 

A tablespoonful of Mate will make five cups 
of tea. 

Place the Mate in a cloth bag in the tea-pot 
and pour boiling water through it. (Be sure that 
the water is boiling.) 

After the water has been poured through the 
Mate remove the bag from the tea-pot. The 
longer it is left in the water the stronger it will 
get. 

In fact, the Mate may be used three times in 
the above manner, and will always produce the 
same agreeable beverage, thus making it the 
most economical as well as the most beneficial 
drink ever offered the American public. 

In South America a little cold water is poured 
over the Mate first, and then the boiling water, 
which produces the very best results. 

Mate is taken like tea or coffee, with or 
without sugar or cream, according to the indi- 
vidual taste. .^^..-.^..^^^^^ 

THE VERBA MATE TEA CO., 

SOLE IMPORTERS 
FOR THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA, 

257 South Fourth Street, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA.. 



"Drink Verba Mate Tea and be Happy." 



Good Advice 

To those who desire a pure, delicious, health- 
giving daily beverage : 

Your grocer or dealer will be glad to place 
Verba Mate Tea on sale if you will call his 
attention to it. if not, send one dollar and 
receive, express prepaid, a month's supply for 
several persons. (Sample, ten cents). 

A Delightful Summer Drink. 

Cold Mate is thirst-quenching, refreshing, 
invigorating and (unlike other beverages which 
stimulate for a time but wreck the nerves) leaves 
absolutely no bad after effects. (See remarks of 
Dr. Fahrig on page 27 of this booklet.) 

Ask for yerba mate at any first-class soda 
fountain. 



THE YERBA MATE TEA CO., 

257 South Fourth Street, 
PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



" Hebe herself could serve no daintier cup. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



000 927 894 1 ^ 

Tea Dealers, 
Coffee Dealers, 
Druggists, 
AND Others, 

WILL FIND IT TO THEIR ADVANTAGE 

TO HANDLE 

VERBA MATE TEA 

(The Great South American Beverage) 

which is sold 
only in our 
Original Packages, 
all ready to 
hand out to 
customers. 

Wholesale prices and terms will be quoted upon 
application. 

THE YERBA MATE TEA CO., 

2 5/ South Fourth Street, 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



n 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




DDOmETflTHl 



